Let's go back to Sunday morning, September 16, 2001: Five days ago the nation experienced the greatest crisis most of your parishioners have ever seen. Today they pack out your sanctuary feeling frightened, angry, confused, and overwhelmed. As you walk to the pulpit it occurs to you that you are about to give what may be the most important sermon of your life.

The room is now so quiet you can hear your own heart pounding in your chest. As you glance across the pulpit you are struck by the tender eyes of your congregation. It looks almost like they are pleading.

How do preachers ever rise to such an incredible moment? We don't. But we pray that the Holy Spirit will descend on the congregation and miraculously speak God's own Word. Nothing we have to say can fill the void in their souls.

Right. No one is clearer about that than preachers. But what do we actually say? Do we speak directly into the crisis with our own critical evaluation of what happened and how we should all respond? ...